How to Avoid Common Garbage Disposal Problems

August 19th, 2014 admin

Whether you already have a garbage disposal in your home or you’re considering getting one, there are several benefits that they have. Aside from the fact that they are a cleaner and more efficient way to get rid of food scraps, they can reduce the odors in your home, decrease plumbing issues and also eliminate some of the waste that would automatically go into landfills if you didn’t have one installed.

Being that garbage disposals are so helpful to have, it’s a good idea to know about some of the common problems that you should avoid as it relates to them. Here are a list of five things that tend to happen to garbage disposals, what you can do if it happens to you, and how to prevent these issues in the future.

What to do if your disposal doesn’t come on. When garbage disposals do not come on, it’s oftentimes due to a power shortage. That’s why you should check your fuse box on occasion to make sure that the fuse connected to your disposal is in good condition. If it is and there is power, then you should look on the bottom of your disposer unit. You should see a reset button that you can push. Just like a hairdryer can stop running when it’s overheated, the same thing can happen with a garbage disposal. That’s why it’s a good idea to not overload it all at once. That can cause jams.

What to do if your disposal jams. Speaking of jams, although garbage disposals can take a lot of foods and liquids, there are some things that you should be careful about putting down inside of yours. Bones and corn husks are two examples. Also, try and keep non-food items out. Although some people try to put things like bent utensils and broken glass down their disposals, it’s almost always going to jam it up.

What to do if your disposal makes a lot of noise. Jams are one reason why you might hear loud or strange sounds coming from your unit. However, other reasons include loose mounting screws or bearings or worn out lugs or blades. You can avoid this by performing routine maintenance on your garbage disposal. WikiHow is one website that can give you some steps. Just go to the site and put “how to maintain a garbage disposal” in the search field.

What to do if your disposal leaks. When you don’t perform routine garbage disposal maintenance and cleaning, it can lead to disposal leaks. Usually this is due to either weak drain connections or a rubber gasket that needs to be replaced. If you’re putting things like bones down your disposal, that can damage your gasket. So again, make sure to keep those out if your disposal.

What to do if your disposal clogs up. Although garbage disposals can take a lot, they can get clogged at times. Typically, if you are grinding things like eggshells, coffee grounds or potato or banana peels, they will almost always lead to your disposal becoming clogged. That’s why it’s best to minimally dispose of those things by using your garbage disposal. If it does happen to get clogged up, there are some things that you can do in order to unclog it. Just go to Home.Repair.About and put “repair clogged disposal” in the search field to find out how.